John Templeton (1766 - 1837)

Born 21 Jan 1766 in Islandmagee, County Antrim, Ireland

Ancestors

Husband of Mary (Hanna) Templeton — married 19 Mar 1789 in Laurens County, South Carolina

Died 30 Apr 1837 at age 71 in Franklin County, Indiana

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Biography

John arrived in SC in 1772 and was the son of Robert Templeton Senior of County Antrim, Ireland, and later of Laurens County, SC. When Robert Senior received a land grant of 250 acres in Laurens County it meant 100 acres for Robert, 50 for his wife, 50 for his son Robert Junior and 50 for his son John.

Some information on John can be found in L. B. Templeton's book on the Laurens County Templetons. In particular, on page 148 there is some data from a family Bible.

John appears in the 1790 and 1800 census records for Laurens County, SC. In the 1800 census he is referred to as Capt. John Templeton. In L. B Templeton's book it is stated a Captain John Templeton sold 100 acres on 12 October 1801 and the action was also signed by Mary Templeton. It states Mary Templeton was the wife of Capt. John Templeton. John may have sold the land in anticipation of moving to Indiana.

John later moved to Indiana with a group from Laurens County known as the Carolina Colony. The group also included John's brother Robert. They left SC in the spring of 1801. A descendant of John and his wife Mary has written a nice article on the trek of the Carolina Colony from SC to Indiana. It can be found at [1]. Some of the items of interest for John in the article include: trek from SC to Indiana with stay over at Dry Fork in 1801; names and ages of children at arrival in Indiana; early life in Indiana; burials on the family farm. Historical Note: On 13 July 1787, the Confederation Congress of the US passed the Northwest Ordinance. This ordinance established the settlement of the area from the western boundary of Pennsylvania and Virginia to the Mississippi River and north from the Ohio River to the Great Lakes. Eventually five states originated from this region - Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan and Wisconsin. Article 6 of the ordinance forbade slavery or servitude from the region.

Historical Note: Regarding John's Farm: Old cemeteries which would have been under Brookville Lake in Franklin County, Indiana, were moved when a dam was built and, in addition, tombstone data was recorded separately. The following is a quote regarding the movement: "In 1974 the United States Army Corps of Engineers built an earthen dam across the East Fork of the Whitewater River, right at the edge of Brookville. The purpose of the dam was flood control and storm water management, and it created the beautiful Brookville Lake. Trouble was, it covered the town of Fairfield with hundreds of feet of water and thus buried a lot of Franklin County history. It also would have drowned 13 pioneer cemeteries, but they dug up all the graves and moved them to higher ground. Most were moved to a cemetery at the top of the valley named "New Fairfield," which is also known as "Sims-Brier."

When John arrived in Indiana, he settled one mile south ow what would be called Quakertown in Union County and was located along the rich river bottom. At that time it was referred to as being in Franklin County and not far from where his brother Robert had settled. In 1821, Union County was formed from pieces of three counties, the southern portion being from Franklin County. Per the above mentioned article, John was one of the first two settlers to enter land at the Cincinnati land office for an area which later became known as Harmony Township, Union County, Indiana.

John and his family moved into his new cabin on 7 Apr 1805. The cabin that was built two stories tall with a fireplace located on both floors. The cabin has been moved twice. The cabin was moved the first time to preserve the old home in 1938. The cabin was relocated from Harmony Township to be located near the Union County Jail in what was then considered to be a secluded spot. The second move relocated the cabin to the courthouse lawn. ^[1]

John Templeton was appointed as the first Justice of the Peace in 1806; he served the northern part of Dearborn County. In 1810 he received his commission to serve as a judge for the Court of Common Pleas of Franklin County. John was the one that named Franklin County. In 1810 an assembly was held in Vincennes to discuss the territorial legislature. He was prominent in getting "Wayne's Purchase" AKA "The Gore" being annexed to Ohio. He did this because of the PRO Slavery sentiment that was prevalent in the state of Indiana at that time. ^[2]

When Brookville Lake was created it extended north from Franklin County into Union County, inundating the farm of John Templeton. Graves or the grave stones from the family plot, known as Leviston and Templeton (Cemetery #10), were moved to the Sims-Brier cemetery in Brookville. Most of the stones are very worn but do provide some data. Those that are known belong to John, his wife Mary, and two daughters, Mary Hanna and Nancy. John's tombstone has his name and the year of his death.

A Further Y700 Tester who is a match to all testers from Robert, Sr. David, Sr. and James, Sr. lines. This takes this Templeton family back to its Irish origins and another as yet unnamed brother and the origins of this family line, to Portmuck Townland, Islandmagee, Northern Ireland. There are hundreds of DNA matches beyond YDNA in Islandmagee to the descendants of these Carolina Templetons.

This profile is a collaborative work-in-progress. Can you contribute information or sources?

Sources

1. ↑ Page 15, Schlesselman, Julie, and Marilyn Luke Gausman
2. ↑ Page 15, Schlesselman, Julie, and Marilyn Luke Gausman

• Land grant information from the SC archives.

• Templeton Family History, p. 148, L. B. Templeton, Jr., Self Published, 1953.

• Various histories on Franklin and Union Counties, Indiana.

• Cemetery/tombstone data.

• Above referenced article on Union County, Indiana.

• House of Hanna by Sarah A. Hanna, Brookville, Indiana, published 1909.

• Schlesselman, Julie, and Marilyn Luke Gausman. History Lost to Progress: Fairfield: The Town under the Lake. J. Schlesselman, 2010